Facebook Is Already Starting To Lay Off Metaverse Employees

In a recent move that has raised concerns about the future of Meta’s ambitious metaverse project, the company, formerly known as Facebook, has announced layoffs within its Reality Labs division, specifically impacting the Facebook Agile Silicon Team (FAST). FAST, a 600-member strong team responsible for developing custom silicon, received notification of the layoffs via internal discussion boards earlier this week, leaving the extent of job losses unknown.

Meta, under the leadership of CEO Mark Zuckerberg, has been striving to make the metaverse a lifelike reality. However, this latest round of layoffs sheds light on the struggles the company faces in executing its vision. Notably, Meta’s foray into the metaverse has already incurred significant financial investment, making these setbacks worrisome.

One of the challenges Meta faces is the underwhelming sales of its virtual reality (VR) headsets and the subsequent lack of user engagement in VR spaces. Additionally, the company has been unsuccessful in developing silicon chips that can compete with industry leaders like Qualcomm, which currently supplies the chips for Meta’s headsets.

The FAST team is not the only department grappling with the task of creating in-house chips; sources suggest Meta has lagged behind in GPU development essential for powering the corporation’s AI endeavors.

This isn’t the first time Meta has had to let go of employees. In November, the company laid off over 11,000 workers, including those from the Reality Labs division. In a grim forecast earlier this year, Zuckerberg cautioned investors about potential layoffs throughout the year.

Despite these challenges, Meta is gearing up to release its latest VR headset, the Quest 3, aimed at hitting the market soon. However, the success of this release and whether it can steer the company away from further financial losses remains uncertain. As Meta navigates this critical period, the tech world will keenly watch how the company adapts and innovates in the competitive metaverse landscape.